With 11 days to go before it closes, the Guardian and Observer's Christmas appeal 2012 has so far raised £214k for eight disability charities.

The money donated by generous readers will be shared equally between the appeal charities, all of which help people with a disability fulfil their potential, whether in education, arts, sport, the workplace or wider society.

The current total raised includes £27,000 pledged during the Guardian and Observer journalists telethon just before Christmas.

Launching the appeal in November, the Guardian editor-in-chief, Alan Rusbridger, wrote: "Disability rights – human rights – are at the heart of what our charities do. They aim to help their beneficiaries overcome practical, institutional and cultural barriers to participation, and surmount often deep-rooted discrimination and prejudice.

"In their different, often inspired ways, they strive for equality, making choice, independence, access and freedom a reality for people with a disability or long-term illness."

The money raised could help someone with autism find a job or get a college education, bring Paralympic sporting opportunities to young people with disabilities, pay for vital communications equipment for someone who is unable to speak, or teach deaf-blind children around the world to communicate.